With the 2013 Oscar nominations just days away, it’s time to unveil our preliminary predictions for which films we think will be nominated come Thursday. In this first predictions post, we go over the technical categories in depth.
A quick note: These predictions are purely based on which films we think the Academy will vote on and don’t necessarily reflect our personal taste or opinions on the film, but are rather an attempt to accurately guess at what will appear in Thursday’s nominations announcement.
To see our predictions in the major categories, click here.
Best Production Design
While not everyone loved Anna Karenina, the artistry in the visuals and production design cannot be denied. The work done by Joe Wright and production designer Sarah Greenwood is marvelous. In second place is Life of Pi, which can’t be ruled out because past winners include 3D spectacles such as Avatar and Hugo, although it feels pretty safe to go with an Anna Karenina win.
2. Life of Pi
3. Lincoln
4. Les Misérables
5. Zero Dark Thirty
Best Cinematography
The best thing Life of Pi has going for it is its visuals, with the photography by Claudio Miranda in the forefront. As with Avatar‘s win in 2010, Life of Pi will rely on a CG-heavy type of filmmaking to get the win. Don’t discount a long overdue win for Roger Deakins with Skyfall, but right now it feels like Life of Pi is the frontrunner as the technical achievements of the film seem to have a lot of steam.
2. Skyfall
3. Anna Karenina
4. Zero Dark Thirty
5. The Master
Best Costume Design
The costumes category typically trends towards more period pieces, and the costumes work in Anna Karenina is absolutely spot-on. Of course, Les Miserables and Lincoln could get that vote as well, although somehow it seems like the lesser of the two from a visuals standpoint. Django Unchained and Mirror Mirror both have solid costumes work, as well, but neither are locks by any means, and we could see a film such as Moonrise Kingdom or A Royal Affair get a nomination when all is said and done.
2. Les Miserables
3. Lincoln
4. Django Unchained
5. Mirror Mirror
Best Film Editing
The Film Editing category seems to be a two-horse race at this point between Argo and Zero Dark Thirty, as the real question is which order to put them in, as well as what films will round out the five slots. At this point it feels safe to fill them with likely Best Picture nominees, with Lincoln, Les Miserables and Life of Pi looking to get nominations as well.
2. Zero Dark Thirty
3. Lincoln
4. Life of Pi
5. Les Miserables
Best Makeup and Hairstyling
The Academy loves when films transform movie stars into recognizable historical figures. They rewarded The Iron Lady last year for turning Meryl Streep into Margaret Thatcher, and should do the same this year with Daniel Day Lewis as Abraham Lincoln. Lincoln benefits so much from having Day-Lewis as a Lincoln lookalike, which puts it ahead of other contenders such as The Hobbit and Men in Black III, which introduce us to characters.
2. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
3. Men in Black III
Best Original Score
John Williams re-teamed with Steven Spielberg yet again for Lincoln, and (thankfully) delivered a suitably restrained score which lent itself greatly to the overall tone of the film. This could easily give Williams his sixth Oscar win, although it’s a strong year all the way down the list. Also, don’t discount an Alexandre Desplat score (Argo, Zero Dark Thirty) or Johnny Greenwood’s The Master score from sneaking into the nominee list.
2. Life of Pi
3. Cloud Atlas
4. Anna Karenina
5. Beasts of the Southern Wild
Best Original Song
This seems to be a two-horse race as well, with Adele’s Skyfall theme the likely frontrunner over the single original song in Les Miserables. The rest of the field is pretty interchangeable, with numerous Django Unchained songs eligible for a nomination, as well as a sizable campaign for a nomination for Magic Mike‘s “Ladies of Tampa.”
2. “Suddenly,” Les Miserables
3. “Learn Me Right,” Brave
4. “Who Did That to You?” Django Unchained
5. “Still Alive,” Paul Williams: Still Alive
Best Sound Editing
The sound categories are always difficult to predict, particularly when you start differentiating between Sound Editing and Sound Mixing. However, it feels fairly safe to say Zero Dark Thirty is a frontrunner at this point. The Hurt Locker won both sound categories back in 2009, and all indications are that the work here is just as stellar. The Academy could, of course, eschew towards the more action-heavy Skyfall or the fantastic high seas action in Life of Pi.
2. Skyfall
3. Life of Pi
4. Les Miserables
5. Lincoln
Best Sound Mixing
Don’t be surprised to see a Zero Dark Thirty sweep in the sound department. However, with mixing, Life of Pi may have a better chance for the seamless job done during the shipwreck and integration of Richard Parker into the audio of the film. Of course, the job done with Les Miserables could give it a win, but it seems a little too bombastic to get more than a nomination.
2. Life of Pi
3. Les Miserables
4. Skyfall
5. Flight
Best Visual Effects
The visual spectacle of Ang Lee’s Life of Pi truly is remarkable. The high seas adventures of a boy and a tiger could not be more visually arresting, as the film uses a full color palette to its advantage to capture the wonders of our oceans. When you take into account the impressive use of 3D and the magnificent CG tiger, Life of Pi is the clear frontrunner.
2. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
3. Marvel’s The Avengers
4. Prometheus
5. Snow White and the Huntsman